Santa Rosa Symphony Youth Orchestra to tour China

In its second international tour, the Santa Rosa Symphony Youth Orchestra will travel to China June 17 to 25 to perform in concert halls in Beijing, Hangzhou and Shanghai.

Accompanied by conductor Richard Loheyde, staff and chaperones, the 50 musicians will also immerse themselves in the Chinese culture through excursions to the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, the Great Wall, the Terra Cotta Museum and Workshop, West Lake, Yu Garden and more.

The SRS Youth Orchestra, which toured and performed in Eastern Europe in 2009 as part of its 50th anniversary, will perform a “Bon Voyage” concert at 7 p.m. June 6 at the Green Music Center’s Weill Hall to support its “Musical Journey Through China.”

The program includes the fourth movement of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2, the first and fourth movements of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8 and Morton Gould’s “American Salute.” It also features a world premiere, Toccata for Orchestra, by local composer Benjamin Taylor; and “Torch Festival” by Chinese composer Wang Xilian, who will meet and rehearse with the youth orchestra in Beijing.

Tickets to the June 6 concert are $17 general, $12 for students and seniors. To reserve, call 546-8742 or go to santarosasymphony.com.

Currently in its 56th season, the Youth Orchestra is the most advanced of the four SRS Youth Ensembles. In 2013, violinist Lindsay Deutsch and her Classics Alive Foundation named the SRS Youth Orchestra “Youth Orchestra of the Year.”